


Raw

by SuspiciousHousePlant



Category: Sally Face (Video Games)
Genre: Chronic Pain, Cuddling & Snuggling, Drabble, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Love, M/M, One Shot, Pain, Painkillers, Sally Face - Freeform, Short One Shot, ignoring chapter 4, nerve pain, they deserve to be happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-02-25
Packaged: 2019-10-26 16:01:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17748986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuspiciousHousePlant/pseuds/SuspiciousHousePlant
Summary: Pain has always been Sal Fisher's closest friend.





	Raw

**Author's Note:**

> Howdy!!  
> I haven't written anything in like,,,,a million years?? And the last thing I did right was posted on fanfiction.net lmao  
> Anywho! Please enjoy this! 
> 
> No beta we die like men

Pain had always been a constant in Sal’s life, be it physical or emotional. Suffering just seemed to follow him no matter where he went. After 17 years of it, he had honestly gotten used to his seemingly permanent mental companion. Sure, he absolutely had a slew of painkillers prescribed to him by various doctors for the nerve pain he felt on a semi-daily basis. Though due to his worry over the addictive streak in his family, often times he would just try to soldier through it. Maybe if his whole face felt like it was engulfed in raging flames he would take half of a painkiller.  
Sal had known that he was going to be having a rough day when he tried to get ready in the morning. He could usually gage how hard his day was going to be depending on how it felt to put his glass eye in. If it didn’t hurt at all, he most likely going to be able to function normally. But when he had dragged himself into his bathroom to put his eye in, and it felt like he was touching raw nerves? Sal knew that there was no way he would be able to do much. Sighing loudly, like he was trying to let whoever was up there know that he did not appreciate the situation, Sally pulled his blue hair up into a ponytail. Not bothering with getting dressed, or trying his eye again he walked out to the living room towards his dad’s room. Gently opening the door in case his dad was still sleeping, he peeked into the room not at all surprised when he saw his dad bent over the old work desk. It seemed like Henry was either always working, or drunk. Sal padded up behind his dad, gently tapping him on the shoulder. His soul broke a little when his dad turned to look at him, and a slew of negative emotions slid through his tired eyes. No one really gets used to the way Sal looks, especially when looking at him reminds you of your dead wife.   
“Hey kiddo.” Henry smiled at him, though it did nothing to hide the sadness, and fatigue tugging at the rest of his face.   
“I’m staying home today..” Sal mumbled, trying not to stretch his facial muscles too much.  
“Ah, having one of those days then?”  
He responded with a single nod, pain pulsing through his scarred skin now that his body was more awake. His dad gave him a small understanding smile, Sal knew that he would never doubt him when it came to his pain levels. Not wanting to suffer through one more second of just standing there with his dad looking anywhere but his face. Without a word, Sal turned back in the direction of the bedroom door, and made his way out to the kitchen to gather what he would need for the day. Water, a few softer snacks, and Gizmo from the worn couch. Depositing the apathetic cat onto his messy bed, he let his head tilt up to face the ceiling. Sal was only pulled from his thoughts by the crackling of the walkie talkie coming to life. 

“Yo Sally face! Do you want me to come up and get you?”

Larry’s voice was scratchy through the walkie talkie, though something about it made Sal feel entirely at ease. Kind of warm even. Especially his laugh, his laugh was amazing. It took him a moment to realize that while yeah daydreaming about his best friend was great, he should probably respond. Scrambling a little, he quickly grabbed it and pressed the button down. 

“Larry face! I’m all good up here, taking care of some….personal stuff.” He cringed at how awkward he sounded. He tossed the walkie talkie onto his bed, briefly startling Gizmo who had settled among the blankets. Sal went about digging around his room looking for the GearBoy, if he was gonna be trapped on his bed he might as well do something during. He fell backwards onto his bed already extremely worn out by the nerve pain. Sal let his breath out slowly through the remainder of his nose, focusing his mental energy on ignoring the red hot pulsing covering his marred skin.   
He let himself spread out however he pleased onto his bed, kicking the covers about until they were to his liking. Gizmo watched the display, waiting until the boy had been still for a few moments to clamber onto his chest. He laid himself down with a contented “Mrrrr”. Sal found himself idly petting the tabby while staring up at the white textured ceiling. The only sounds in the room being the Gizmo purring, and Sal’s own breathing. He hated the way his breathing sounded. If he was breathing through his nose then it whistled, and he sounded like a flat-faced persian cat. Though, breathing through his mouth was always the worst option. Since the left side was essentially torn open, it would make loud, wet noises. And that’s not even mentioning the amount of drool that leaked from the huge wound. Sal didn’t like his own face obviously, but his mouth was something he always worried about people seeing. That or his empty eye socket. Even if the glass eye made for many extremely funny pranks on his friends.   
Sal smiled slightly, wincing at the stretch of muscles, when the thought of his friends crept into his head. They were the best group of buds he could ever ask for, he loved them fiercely. Todd was so smart, he always seemed to know something about everything. While those outside of the horsemen only really saw the clinical side of the ginger, Sal knew that there was so much more to him. He could always make the most clever puns, not to mention that he was mad good at fighting games. He knew just about every combo in the games they played, and if he didn’t already know one? Todd would practice the game until he could do it with his eyes closed. Ash was the default mom friend. But like a cool mom. Her knowledge of first-aid came in handy very often with the group. Sal couldn’t count all the times she had patched him up after he and Larry did something stupid while goofing off. While all of his friends were wildly supportive of Sal’s gender non-conforming habits, Ash was definitely the most actively in it with him. She knew how more feminine clothes were supposed to hang, how to style hair, plus she had taught Sal to properly paint his nails. (Even though her own nails were typically chipped and bitten to hell).   
Of course, then came Larry on the lov-my-buds train. Damn right, he gets his own section. Larry was the first person, past Gizmo, that Sal could confidently say was his best friend. They had spent so many nights in the basement together that Sal was sure he knew just about every little fact about the taller boy. Like how he would press his tongue against the gap in his front teeth while he was trying to focus. Or how Larry could rapid fire switch between english, and spanish when he was overwhelmed with emotion. Larry could sing very well, and while he was best at his precious metal he had serious skill with softer ballets. Sal found himself laughing softly while he thought about how pumped Larry had been on halloween when he had gotten watermelon hard candies, as they were his super favorite candy. Don’t even get Sal started on how straight beautiful his best friend was. Just thinking about his long hair that rivaled any girls, and his strong shoulders got Sal feeling warm in his heart. He would have thrown his hands over his face in embarrassment if he weren’t scared that the pain would literally kill him right then and there.   
“I can’t believe I’m in love with my best fucking friend.” Sal threw his hands up towards the ceiling in frustration.   
Sal really honestly wasn’t sure what he, and Larry were. They were definitely friends but there were things that really made his head hurt when he thought about it too much. Like how often Larry would throw a gangly arm around Sal’s shoulders, or the times he would gently cradle his face after a particularly rough night terror. He would so gingerly remove the prosthetic, his eyes so full of adoration when he actually got to look Sal in the eye. Part of Sal’s aching soul soothed when he recalled how gently Larry had pressed their foreheads together while whispering comforting words to him. His hair acting as a shield around the pair. All the times Larry had put himself between Sal and any kind of danger. The blue haired teen let his mind be overcome with thoughts of the tall metalhead. Giving his brain something other than his pain to worry over, he soon was drifting into the twilight sleep zone. Before he knew it he had dozed off. 

 

Sal woke up violently, shooting up and effectively throwing Gizmo off of his chest. He could swear that he was on fire. It felt as if someone was slowly skinning him with a red hot razor blade. Tears that stung his skin flowed from his eye, very much obscuring his already small field of vision. He swiped widely at the liquid, hissing at the contact. He stumbled to his feet, hobbling his way out into the hallway towards the single bathroom. Sal shucked his pajama pants off, causing him to stumble and ram his shoulder into the door. Sal really wasn’t sure exactly what happened in the next few moments but he did know that somehow he had thrown himself underneath the spray of a freezing cold shower.   
His shirt plastered itself to his chest, and his boxers followed suit. His skin burned with what Sal would describe as thousands of hornet stings all at the same time, over and over again. His blue hair slicked back against his neck, the ice cold water freezing his nerves. Sal gasped loudly, the muscles in his body flexing on their own accord. He screwed his eyes shut, head completely pointed towards the shower head. Slowly he sank down onto his knees, leaning against the shower wall. Sal slumped completely against the cool surface, ignoring the new scream of pain at the contact on his skin. He wasn’t entirely sure when he passed out in the shower. But it did sure as hell happen, his brain far too overwhelmed by the constant pain. This was one of the worst attacks he had had happen in a long time. 

 

Someone was touching him. Sal knew that much in his almost sleep addled state. The world came swirling back to him, just very blurry and...wet? Right, he had passed out in the shower. Only now, the water had stopped, and someone was hoisting him out of the tub. His head immediately jumped to that his dad had found him.  
“....dad..?” His words were quiet, and jumbled. He heard someone chuckle softly above him.   
“Afraid not, Sally face.” Larry’s voice broke through clearly. “Can you stand? I can carry you if not.” His voice was soft, coated in care.   
Sal let his forehead drop against his friends chest. He could probably walk if he was being honest. But while he was being honest, he could also admit that he really wanted to be close to Larry in that moment.   
“I’ll take that as a no then…” He mumbled softly, hoisting the smaller boy into his arms. Larry would have liked to carry Sal back to his bedroom, and make sure he was comfortable but there was the issue with him being soaking wet. He gently deposited the smaller boy onto the toilet, and began to search the room for towels. He found them rather quickly in the small bathroom.   
“Arms up, Blue.” Larry commanded very gently, getting Sal out of the soaked shirt. When he managed to peel the clothing from his body, Larry gingerly wrapped the towel around his shoulders. He dried his friend off to the best of his ability, paying special attention to the irritated scars. He dabbed at the skin instead of any kind of rubbing motion. This was the first time that Larry had seen Sal’s bare chest, even though the pair had been swimming together multiple times. Sal always wore shirts when they swam and now he knew exactly why.   
Scars littered his skin, some of them stretched and white. Others puffy, and angry looking. Larry longed to let his fingers drift across the scars, his heart aching to shower the hurt boy in all the love his body held. That could wait for now, he needed to get his friend dry, and more comfortable. Larry ran his fingers through blue hair, pulling it away from his face. He pulled the hair into a messy bun so that it would be away from his face, where Larry assumed it hurt the most. He let his hands linger on his head, gently massaging his scalp. He snapped himself back to the task at hand; drying and dressing his friend. Larry carefully pulled away from the boy, nervous to leave him even for just a second.   
“I’m gonna go grab you some clothes, okay dude?” Larry’s eyes searched his face, trying to determine if he was really okay enough to be left. Sal, now much more aware, nodded. The taller boy swiftly went on his clothes collecting journey.   
Sal pulled himself up on shaky legs, going to the medicine cabinet to retrieve one of his many painkillers. Fainting was definitely the sign that he really needed to medicate himself. He popped one of the pills quickly, longing for the numbness that it would provide his nerves. Soon enough, Larry was back into the room with some of Sal’s pajamas in hand. He smiled upon seeing that he was up on his own. Sal smiled back, suddenly very aware that he wasn’t wearing his prosthetic. Part of him wanted to cover up with his hands, but that would still leave his chest exposed. Desperately wanting to cover himself up he reached out, and gently took the clothes from Larry. The two boys stood in the bathroom awkwardly for a few moments, smiling at each other.   
“Shit, you probably want to change, huh?” Larry laughed awkwardly, “I’ll uh be in the living room when you’re done.” He turned, and went on his way into the living room. Leaving Sal with himself.   
He pulled the shirt that Larry had picked over his head, and onto his frame. He quickly removed the wet boxers, letting them hit the floor with an admittedly gross sound. He dried himself, and dressed quickly. When he was clothed, he stared himself down in the mirror. The mirror was almost always an enemy that he avoided whenever possible. He took a deep breath before moving out to the main room. Larry sat up when he saw him. Sal flopped down onto the couch next to him, sighing loudly as he did. Larry almost instantly draped an arm around his shoulder, like it was just instinct to him.  
Sal pulled his legs up underneath him, leaning into Larry. The taller boy was warm, solid, and oh so very welcoming. He could feel the rise and fall of his breathing, if he were to lay his head on his chest he would have been able to hear the others heartbeat. Being close to Larry was like coming home. That’s how it felt. Larry let his head rest against Sal’s, his heart finally starting to calm down after finding him in the shower like that.   
Henry had sent Lisa a text letting her know that he had to go into the city for work, and that Sal was in the apartment. Henry being out wasn’t all the much of a surprise to Larry but what was a surprise was that Sal was there alone but he hadn’t heard anything from him since that morning. Sure, he was already worried when he didn’t show up to school but his worry grew once his mom told him about the text. Larry had tried to reach him with both the walkie talkie, and his phone but he hadn’t gotten any sort of response at all. He had taken the familiar rickety elevator up to the Fisher apartment, using the key gifted to him to get in. The apartment was silent other than the muffled sound of the shower running. Larry knocked at the door, wanting to make sure that his friend was doing okay. When there was no response he basically ripped the door open. Sal was slumped against the shower wall, completely passed out. He was wearing his clothes, which had to mean that he was in a huge hurry to get under the water. Larry rapidly shut the water off and had pulled the boy out of the bathtub. All of it leading up to our current scene.   
“You really scared me, bluebird..” He muttered, burying his nose in Sal’s hair. Very gently he pressed a kiss to the crown of his head.   
“I’m sorry about that Lar. My pain caught me by surprise and I fainted.” Sal felt awful for scaring his friend like that, it hadn’t even really crossed his mind to tell him that he was having a rough nerve day. He had just been so overwhelmed. The two fell into a comfortable silence, holding each other close.   
The painkiller had started to run its course, and Sal felt much more human than he had all day. He snuggled into Larry, trying to fix the chills that laying in the cold water had brought on. Blindly reaching around the top of the couch, Sal pulled the throw blanket down over himself, and Larry. The taller boy ran his finger tips along his shoulder absentmindedly, humming to Sal softly.   
Sal felt comfortable, and happy. Larry had made everything feel alright. He gently interlaced his fingers with Larry’s free hand. The two boys stayed like that all evening, eventually falling asleep against each other in the comfortable warmth. Pain no longer an issue.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!   
> im lov u


End file.
